Chapman Will Take a Victory

Chapman took a silver lining where it could find one Saturday night.

The Panthers defeated Occidental, 35-21, Saturday in front of 823 at Occidental. It was their first victory since they forfeited five games because of ineligible players.

That was about the extent of the good news. The rest wasn’t so pleasant.

The worst was the loss of starting quarterback Curtis Robinson, who injured his left knee--the same knee he had surgery on last season.

“I’ve coached a lot of years and a win is a win,” Coach Ken Visser said. “But obviously I’m very concerned about Curtis.”

Robinson will be examined this week.

Greg Hyland was solid in relief, completing 11 of 17 passes for 226 yards and three touchdowns. But it came against a team that is winless through seven games.

Even then, Occidental threw a scare into the Panthers. The Tigers had not scored more than 18 points in a game this season, yet trailed, 26-21, midway through the fourth quarter.

Still, it was a victory and considering the past few weeks, it was something to celebrate.

On Tuesday, five victories were removed by Chapman President Jim Doti, who announced the team would forfeit the games it played with running back Darnell Morgan and defensive back Malcolm King, who were each playing a fifth season of college football.

The Panthers (6-1) also were hit by injuries. David Tangitau, their best offensive lineman, was out because of an ankle injury and starting cornerback Malcolm Hunt was out with a leg injury. To make matters worse, Darnell Rubin, one of the top kick returners in NCAA Division III, was held out of the game because he missed two practices due to a family commitment, according to Chapman officials.

So when Robinson injured his knee in the first quarter, the Panthers lost another playmaker. Robinson had already thrown a 50-yard touchdown pass to Martrice Stephens on the game’s fourth play. But on the next series, he dived out of bounds at the end of a 17-yard run and played only two more series.

That left the offense in Hyland’s hands. He started five games last season after Robinson was injured in the third game. Although he doesn’t have Robinson’s arm strength, he did have Stephens and tight end David Vaccaro and Hyland made use of them both.

Stephens finished with seven receptions for 179 yards, including a 45-touchdown catch with seven minutes left that gave the Panthers a 32-21 lead. Vaccaro caught four passes for 89 yards, including two difficult touchdown receptions. He made a leaping catch on a 29-yard touchdown in the second quarter and then caught a 29-yard touchdown while lying on is back in the third quarter.

Meanwhile, running back Ramsey Byrd gained 98 yards and scored one touchdown, giving the Panthers a solid running game for the first time since Morgan was ruled ineligible.

And still they couldn’t shake Occidental.